Mar 5, 2018
US aircraft carrier Carl Vinson is making a historic call at Vietnam, the first time a ship of this size has visited since the Vietnam War ended.
The nuclear-powered carrier will anchor off the port city of Danang, where US combat troops first landed in the war, making this a highly symbolic location.
The visit is meant to demonstrate the countries’ growing military ties.
But analysts say it inevitably sends a message to China as it continues to develop the disputed South China Sea.
The BBC’s Jonathan Head, who is in Danang, says that while co-operation between the US and Vietnam’s military has grown it is still limited, and Vietnam has to manage the messaging of this visit carefully.
China is now the de facto superpower in this region, and by far the most important trading partner for Vietnam.
So Vietnam’s communist leadership is taking care to avoid any steps that might upset relations with its giant neighbour, our correspondent says.
China claims almost all of the South China Sea, including reefs and islands also claimed by other nations. Vietnam specifically exercises claims over the Paracel and Spratly islands.
